The Times’s Workologist recently answered a letter from a reader in a “do-nothing” job . Rather than wait for the position to be eliminated, the reader asked if it made more sense to ask to be laid off. The Workologist’s reply: Be proactive and propose new projects or initiatives to the boss. A new job search may be inevitable, but don’t give up the current position without at least a modest effort at reinvention. Jason Henry | The New York Times Bill Burnett, left, and Dave Evans, instructors at Stanford University, in California, May 13, 2016. Finding Happiness at Work You know what makes you happy. Pursue it by changing the routine. view it nowGallup regularly asks people if they are “engaged” at work, meaning involved in, enthusiastic about and committed to their job. Fewer than a third said yes in the most recent poll . To reverse this, a group called the Energy Project wrote in the Sunday Review section about how employees are vastly more satisfied and productive if four core needs are met: physical (opportunities to renew and recharge at work); emotional (feeling valued for contributions); mental (being able to focus on important tasks and define when and where to get work done); and spiritual (doing more of what they do best and enjoy, and feeling connected to a higher purpose at work).